A new partnership will help finance the development of one of the nation’s largest Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) projects, a woody biomass-based biorefinery planned for Washington State. Today, Northwest Advanced Bio-Fuels (NWABF) announced a funding partnership with Black Gold Equity Partners, a nationally renowned private equity platform that finances and transforms innovative businesses into institutional-quality operating platforms.
“One of the greatest challenges facing the sustainable fuels industry isn’t technology – it’s access to capital,” said Dave Smoot, Founder of Northwest Advanced Bio-Fuels. ” Black Gold Equity Partners understands what it takes to build a project like this one. Their backing helps us move from concept to construction, and we believe it shows what’s possible for sustainable fuel infrastructure across the country.”
The partnership comes as industry-wide mandates and standards for lower-carbon transportation fuels take effect across global markets beginning in 2030.
“Projects of this scale require a financeable plan, credible counterparties and measurable milestones,” said Arthur Lyons, Managing Partner of Black Gold Equity Partners. “Our role is to apply disciplined investment judgment and work with the NWABF team to determine what it will take to get there.”
Black Gold Partner Eric Blair is leading the firm’s financing engagement with NWABF, with Managing Partner Arthur Lyons overseeing its strategic involvement. Black Gold Partner Drew Green helped coordinate the relationship and discussions among the teams. NWABF founder Dave Smoot and his development team remain responsible for advancing the project’s facility.
NWABF will quickly become one of the leading developers of one of the United States’ largest “woody biomass” derived SAF biofuel facilities and has targeted breaking ground in Washington State in late 2027. And with it, bringing a myriad of economic, environment and societal benefits, including:
Tribal Partnerships
As an American Indian-founded company (NWABF Founder Dave Smoot is a member of the Creek Nation in Oklahoma), NWABF will be partnering with a number of Tribes throughout the state to help clean their land of massive amounts of forest floor waste. In doing so they will be providing the Tribes with a revenue stream replacing a huge expense the Tribes have currently in disposing of the waste, and provide scholarships to Indigenous and underprivileged community members who are interested in industry training at local colleges, internships and future career opportunities. They will also be helping to develop and support local senior housing for the surrounding Tribal communities.
Veteran Support
NWABF also plans to invest directly in local veterans’ and first responders’ centers and housing initiatives, honoring those who built and protected the surrounding communities. The commitment ties back to Smoot himself, a U.S. Army Reserve veteran who served during the Vietnam War from 1969-1975, and also participated in Department of Defense (DoD), Defense Logistics’ technology integration and logistics initiatives as a minority civilian contractor supporting the U. S. effort during the Desert Storm War. Two other members of the NWABF team are military veterans who served with honor. Steven “Bear” Brown served for 20-years as a Navy Seal Team VI Member and runs one of the top PTSD Camps in the country, CAMP BROWN BEAR. He will continue overseeing that effort once the Project requires his presence in Washington full-time as Director of Logistics. Steven served in Afghanistan, Iraq and other conflicts. Paul Clarke served in the Marine Corp in Iraq participating in Operation Inherent Resolve, (OIR), in 2018. He just completed his second career journey as a first responder as a firefighter and paramedic from 2013-2026, for the City of Dallas. Paul was honorable discharged in 2019 from the U. S. Marine Reserves, having extended his career in the Reserves, and will serve NWABF as V. P. of Marketing. Finally, Arthur Lyons of Black Gold Equity Partners served in the U. S. Army from 2008 to 2014 during Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom, (OEF), as a Chemical Specialist with expertise in Convoy Security.
Economic Boost via Jobs & Development
The NWABF SAF Biorefinery and its operations – which are estimated to bring upwards of $3 billion in private investment in the local community – will create thousands of high-paying union and non-union jobs that will improve the community’s economics for the 3 years of construction and decades of operation to follow. The development will also enhance growth and development of rural communities, increase demand for local hotels, restaurants and retail operations, supplement the local supply chain, improve the health of the private forestry industry, and support healthier forests and wildlife habitat through responsible forest management and the removal and productive use of woody residuals..
Climate & Clean Energy
NWABF’s biorefinery will be the largest and first of its kind in the Pacific Northwest to utilize forest slash and mill residuals in producing clean ASTM compliant SAF for use in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) and U.S west coast airports. SAF produced by NWABF will achieve in excess of 90% reduction in Green House Gas (GHG) emissions over the fuel’s lifecycle, compared to a conventional fossil jet fuel. This is in addition to reducing 100% of local direct emissions of particulate matter and sulfur oxide around the airport during take-off and landing, which offers enormous environmental benefits to surrounding communities, including the Port of Seattle, which has mandated emissions reductions. The company’s use of only wood waste from the surrounding forest floors will also support fire management to prevent devastating forest fires and economic losses and will help keep underground water clean from noxious gases emanating from decaying wood on the forest floors.
State Incentives
Demand for local and regional feedstock will create new economic opportunities and revenue streams while lowering forest management costs by providing a long-term market for low-value waste wood and forest slash that currently carries significant costs for removal and disposal. Governor Ferguson’s office has been a strong advocate for Washington State to lead the country in the development of sustainable aviation fuel and mandating the use of SAF; this is the beginning of sound environmental impacts initiated by local government officials. Backed by $550+billion in world-leading Project partners from the global energy sector, the NWABF project brings stability, significant community spending, and substantial tax revenues to state and county governments.
Excess Power Supply
According to the Bonneville Power Administration’s “2024 Loads & Resources Study”, under firm water conditions the PNW merits could move from a surplus of ~1,426 average megawatts, (MW), in 2025 to a deficit of 2,738 MW by 2034. Other companies in the Longview, Washington area stand to benefit from the potential of having a new over-the-fence power sale from the NWABF facility at a time when energy supply in the Pacific Northwest is becoming quite limited. While not a massive project in physical size, it has broad economic, environmental, and community impacts.
“This partnership puts real momentum behind a project that will matter to Washington’s forests, its Tribes and Rural Communities and the future of sustainable fuels,” added Smoot.
With groundbreaking targeted for late 2027, Northwest Advanced Bio-Fuels and Black Gold Equity Partners are poised to help usher in a new era of economic vitality, clean energy innovation and responsible forest stewardship across the State of Washington.
For more information regarding Northwest Advanced Bio-Fuels, visit www.nwabiofuels.com.